Through Genos's mechanical eyes, King's sight locked precisely onto the torrential rain, pinpointing the green figure hidden within the downpour.
Deep Sea King forced his eyes open; those savage fish-eyes, now on the verge of shattering, wept twin trails of blood that the rain washed away.
His vision finally cleared, yet the world remained veiled in crimson; searing pain from his eyes stabbed at the sea monarch's nerves.
"Roooaaar! I'll slaughter you!!"
Relying on perception already at Peak of Demon, pushed to Upper Demon by fury, Deep Sea King located Genos and lunged with a roar.
Under the rain, the gashes in Deep Sea King's hide began knitting shut, charred patches slowly giving way to new skin.
King frowned; this was exactly why Genos currently struggled against Deep Sea King.
The creature's hide was thick and its regeneration strong; most of Genos's arsenal dealt only limited harm.
To put it plainly, Genos's mechanical body was a highly mobile assassin—each strike lightning-fast yet inflicting a mere ten damage.
Deep Sea King, meanwhile, was a lumbering tank: Genos could kite him like a dog, but every second the monster regained five health.
Though not an instant full heal, in a drawn-out fight Genos could still lose; his core's energy was finite.
Yet… hands on the controls, King blazed with unshakeable confidence—the pride of a Peak gamer.
If every attack is just a scratch, I'll craft a brand-new, badass combo!
The thought flashed by; Deep Sea King was already in his face. King jabbed the pad and Genos moved.
Thrusters burst for an instant; Genos slid sideways, effortlessly evading the monster's charge.
The left-hand buzz-blade slashed, shearing the gill on Deep Sea King's left cheek and carving a great gash across his jaw, tearing facial muscle.
Pain drove the sea monarch berserk; a massive clawed fist shattered raindrops as it smashed toward Genos.
Thrusters flared again; Genos rocketed back, then sprang forward mid-retreat.
Unable to check his own momentum, Deep Sea King slammed his fist into the ground, spider-web fissures erupting across the earth.
Not good!
Seeing the cyborg vanish, Deep Sea King sensed danger; he half-turned—silver flashed at his right cheek, agony blooming.
White gill-filaments fluttered; green blood sprayed as the right-side facial muscle was split in two.
With no muscle to support it, his jaw sagged, leaving him gaping grotesquely.
The next instant Deep Sea King finally sensed Genos—behind him!
"Die!!"
A fist whipped out, raising gales, but struck only empty air.
Genos had slipped beneath him; the buzz-blade slashed dozens of times while his right arm's Incineration Cannon blasted the inside of Deep Sea King's thigh.
Blade-light flashed; both Achilles tendons severed, the monster's legs collapsed and he crashed to his knees.
The Incineration Cannon's blaze roared up from groin to face, blinding him anew.
Agony wracked every nerve; panic seized Deep Sea King.
This… this is bad… Monarch of the ocean, he had united the thinking sea-folk alone and marched to conquer the land.
According to the script he'd once envisioned, he would stride ashore with unstoppable might, duel Earth's strongest human in a clash of legends, and emerge victorious, giving sea-beasts dominion over sea and land.
Instead, his worldview shattered.
His proud flesh was shredded by a whirling blade; his titanic strength couldn't graze a hair on the cyborg—like punching cotton.
He'd imagined a brutal slugfest, fists on flesh, the same exhilaration he'd felt against that naked, muscle-bound freak.
Now the sea monarch knelt, huge frame sagging, eyes still bleeding, jaw slack and maw gaping.
A phantom blur closed in; Killing Intent licked at his throat.
Damn—he means to behead me!
Frantically he clamped his remaining intact hands over his neck, shielding it.
But the blade never aimed for his neck—it struck elsewhere.
"Aaaaargh! My eyes—my kingly eyes!!"
The already-shattered orbs were cleaved in two; blood gushed in rivers, plunging him into total darkness.
Blinded, Deep Sea King thrashed his thick arms in wild desperation.
Once symbols of might, those arms were now his last straw.
Unnoticed, Genos stood before him and raised his right hand.
Deep Sea King flailed without pattern, touching nothing.
In the pouring rain, the blue core blazed; energy surged into the Palm Cannon pressed against the monster's gaping mouth.
"Incineration Cannon—100% output!!"
A furious beam blasted down the royal gullet; searing heat engulfed his vitals, incinerating organs.
His arms dropped; life fled. Deep Sea King knelt in the storm, dead.